~~NOTOC~~

//Listen here, you stripey little bastards! I AM THE QUEEN NOW.//

Hivekeepers use a swarm of tiny, pernicious creatures (insects, perhaps, or maybe something much stranger) as a living weapon. This generally requires them to get in quite close to or even completely surrounded by their targets, which is an unusual tactical position for a Whelm weapon. On the plus side, this weapon also avoids two of the biggest drawbacks common to many other Whelm weapons: it's very inexpensive to use and friendly fire is never a problem. 

This is a weapon and subject to [[UWR|universal weapon rules]].

^[[#Hivekeeper]] ^^Command swarms of vermin. |
|{{fa>caret-right?24}} |[[#Counterswarm]] |Counterattack freely. |
|{{fa>caret-right?24}} |[[#Infestation]] |Fill corpses with vermin. |
|{{fa>caret-right?24}} |[[#Throw Nest]] |Displaced area of effect. |
|{{fa>caret-right?24}} |[[#Vampiric Swarm]] |Steal life. |
|{{fa>caret-right?24}} |[[#Vermincloak]] |Conceal yourself after attacking. |
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====== Hivekeeper ======

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^{{ra>fireball-sword?48|Offense}} ||{{fa>plus-circle?24&align=left}}**Attack:** As an action, you may make a Whelm attack against any target(s) that are in your space or adjacent to you. \\ \\ {{fa>plus-circle?24&align=left}}**No Friendly Fire:** Because your weapon is composed of tiny creatures capable of (more or less) understanding and obeying your will, this weapon does not hit any allies or anybody else you'd rather not damage in the area of effect. \\ \\ {{fa>plus-circle?24&align=left}}**Conditions:** When the trigger die is 10+, this weapon inflicts its wielder's choice of the Bleary, Nauseous, or Vulnerable conditions to its target. \\ \\ {{fa>plus-circle?24&align=left}}**Area Weapon:** This weapon does not suffer failure chances from concealment and failure chances from mismatched sizes between attacker and target are reduced by 12. \\ \\ {{fa>minus-circle?24&align=left}}**Too Big:** If you are large enough that you occupy multiple spaces at once, you must choose a single space you occupy to be the center of your Hivekeeper attack effects. You can change which space is affected with each new attack you make, though. \\ \\ {{fa>minus-circle?24&align=left}}**Ammunition:** When the trigger die rolled with the attack is a 1, mark off 1 Supplies. This weapon cannot be used if you have no Supplies remaining. |
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^Condition ^^Explanation ^
|{{ra>bleeding-eye?32&align=left}} ^Bleary |{{fa>minus-circle?18&align=left}} Treat all spaces as having partial concealment. Spaces that already have partial concealment are treated as having full concealment. |
|{{ra>turd?32&align=left}} ^Nauseous |{{fa>minus-circle?18&align=left}} All weapon attacks cost 1 Energy in addition to any normal costs they may have. \\ \\ {{fa>minus-circle?18&align=left}} Cannot double attack during a round. \\ \\ {{fa>plus-circle?18&align=left}} Weapon attacks made for free (without spending any actions) are unaffected. |
|{{ra>falling?32&align=left}} ^Vulnerable |{{fa>minus-circle?18&align=left}} All incoming weapon attacks deal +2 damage. |

====== Counterswarm ======

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^{{ra>fireball-sword?48|Offense}} ||{{fa>plus-circle?24&align=left}}**Protect Your Home:** Your swarm senses threats and rises to face them. When you are hit by any attack, you can choose to immediately make a Hivekeeper attack as a free action that is resolved immediately after the attack that triggered it. Note that the attacker does not need to be within range of your Hivekeeper attack in order for you to decide to use this ability after being attacked by them. \\ \\ {{fa>minus-circle?24&align=left}}**Stay Local:** If you know the Throw Nest or Infestation abilities from this archetype, you cannot use them in conjunction with Counterswarm. All Counterswarm attacks affect only your space and adjacent spaces as usual for this weapon. \\ \\ {{fa>minus-circle?24&align=left}}**Scramble Cost:** Counterswarm attacks consume Supplies on a trigger die roll of 1-3 instead of only on a 1. |
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====== Infestation ======

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^{{ra>fireball-sword?48|Offense}} ||{{fa>plus-circle?24&align=left}}**Corpse Nest:** Your vermin can enter and infest corpses in their area of effect- either corpses that were already there or ones freshly created by the Hivekeeper attack itself. Mark the location of every corpse nest you've created in this manner so you remember where they are. \\ \\ {{fa>plus-circle?24&align=left}}**Bring Forth:** At any point later on, you can spend an action to command nested vermin to burst out of a single infested corpse of your choice within 20 meters. This creates another Hivekeeper attack centered on the corpse's position instead of your own. \\ \\ {{fa>plus-circle?24&align=left}}**Burst Free:** Making an attack from an infested corpse never costs Supplies regardless of the trigger die result. \\ \\ {{fa>minus-circle?24&align=left}}**Sojourner Creep:** After commanding an attack from a given infested corpse, that corpse is spent and you cannot attack with it again unless you re-infest it with another attack. \\ \\ {{fa>minus-circle?24&align=left}}**No Cross-Pollination:** Attacks made from infested corpses cannot infest or re-infest other corpses. |
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====== Throw Nest ======

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^{{ra>fireball-sword?48|Offense}} ||{{fa>plus-circle?24&align=left}}**Bee Grenade:** Instead of centering this weapon's effect on your own space(s), you can deploy a nest of vermin anywhere within throwing range (0-10 meters) and have the effect happen there instead. The target space and all adjacent spaces are affected as normal. \\ \\ {{fa>minus-circle?24&align=left}}**Costly:** Throwing a nest consumes Supplies on a trigger die result of 1-3 instead of only a 1. |
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====== Vampiric Swarm ======

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^{{ra>eye-shield?48|Protection}} ||{{fa>plus-circle?24&align=left}}**Feed Me:** Your swarm brings back bits of stolen life-force to offer you in tribute. When the trigger die is 7+, you restore 1 Energy per target struck by the attack. |
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====== Vermincloak ======

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^{{ra>eye-shield?48|Protection}} ||{{fa>plus-circle?24&align=left}}**Swarmheart:** A lingering cloud of vermin follows you. When you make a Hivekeeper attack, you gain partial concealment until the beginning of your next turn. |
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